Darjeeling Black First Flush FTGFOP1 Soom Garden

by Leave Your Sword

Sparkling2.5% ABVView on Leave Your Sword website

Production Philosophy

Darjeeling Black First Flush FTGFOP1 Soom Garden is a single-estate tea kombucha produced by Leave Your Sword, the Amsterdam micro-brewery founded by Nicolas Adam. It belongs to the producer's Single Estate line, brewed from a single tea garden selected, per Leave Your Sword, for its best profile from that origin. The beverage is unpasteurized, unfiltered, naturally carbonated, and bottle aged.[1]

The grade specified is FTGFOP1 (Finest Tippy Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe 1), a first spring harvest that, according to Leave Your Sword, undergoes a short oxidation process retaining herbaceous notes, an explosive attack, and a sweet finish. Leave Your Sword notes that Darjeeling first flush teas are nicknamed the 'champagne' of black teas for their finesse. The label carries an illustration of a Bengal tiger (Panthera tigris tigris), drawn by Brindi Tattoo.[2]

Composition & Vinification

Declared ingredients: organic darjeeling, organic beetroot sugar, water, and kombucha culture.[2]

Darjeeling First Flush FTGFOP1, Soom Garden — Aromatic and Structural Base. The tea originates from the Soom Garden in south-west Bengal, sourced from tea trees over 130 years old at an elevation of 1600 metres. Leave Your Sword dates the founding of the Soom Estate to 1859 and describes it as spanning over 237 hectares at 1600 metres. The estate sits 18 kilometres from the heart of Darjeeling in the Himalayan massif of south-west Bengal and is, per Leave Your Sword, among the 86 gardens recognized by the Darjeeling Plantation Association. The grade is a first spring harvest given a short oxidation that retains herbaceous notes, an explosive attack, and a sweet finish.[2]

Tasting Profile

Nose & Palate. Leave Your Sword records tasting notes of hay, dry nettle, wild flowers, chamomile, and iodine.[2]

Pairings

Leave Your Sword pairs the beverage with lamb tartare, roasted cauliflower, flat oysters from Zeeland, and lobster.[2]

Provenance & Sourcing

Specifications. A single-estate tea kombucha, part of Leave Your Sword's Single Estate line.[2]

  • ABV: 2.5%
  • Classification: Single Estate line, brewed from a single tea garden

Production. The beverage is unpasteurized, unfiltered, naturally carbonated, and bottle aged.[2]

Ingredients Policy. Made with organic darjeeling and organic beetroot sugar, alongside water and kombucha culture.[2]

Recognition

Darjeeling Black First Flush FTGFOP1 Soom Garden won a Bronze medal at the International Wine and Spirit Competition 2024.[2]